What drives China's continuation of trade conflict with the U.S.? Taking China's foreign policy ideology seriously

Since the outbreak of the Sino-U.S. trade conflict in 2018, both the U.S. and China have suffered significant economic losses. However, China's losses seem more devastating. China now faces the looming risk of economic and technological decoupling or de-risking. This begs the question: Why does China continue to engage in the trade dispute despite its significant economic and technological setbacks? Numerous studies have thus far examined this question primarily in the context of the hegemonic competition between the U.S. and China. We argue that for a full understanding of the issue, it is imperative to delve into the realm of Chinese domestic politics, which plays a pivotal role in the trade conflict. The central argument of this article is that China's heightened and proactive response to the ongoing trade dispute with the U.S. is largely due to its new foreign policy ideology under Xi. Specifically, the foreign policy ideology known as 'Striving for Achievement' ((sic)(sic)(sic)(sic), Fen Fa You Wei), which prioritizes political gains over the mere pursuit of economic interests in the international community, is the driving force for China's increasingly assertive foreign trade policy.